


Familiar

by insertfruitpun



Series: Valentine's Day fics [5]
Category: The Witchlands Series - Susan Dennard
Genre: F/F, but they're closer to it than before, it's just fluff, nothing actually happens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 10:02:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29366721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/insertfruitpun/pseuds/insertfruitpun
Relationships: Vivia Nihar/Stacia "Stix" Sotar
Series: Valentine's Day fics [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2149077
Comments: 6
Kudos: 3





	Familiar

Vivia had been avoiding Stix for a while.

At first, it was a subconscious thing. It was a whole new world, now that she had her crown. And there was so much to do.

When things did eventually calm down, it became a very much conscious thing. Vivia didn't know what to say to Stix. What to do. She didn't know if Stix even wanted her to say anything.

The facts were, what happened was Vivia's fault. She'd heard from second hand what happened to Stix. Only rumours, as Vivia didn't dare to talk to Stix's family, either. But it made it clear enough that, if she was there, Stix would have cracked and told her instead of going away.

Or at the very least they'd go together. 

Vivia knew that, when it came down to it, she wouldn't choose Stix over Nubrevna. She was needed, and she couldn't just leave. But Stix didn't think she was going to be gone for days. If Vivia was there, she could've very well gone with her, presumably for just a few hours.

And then Serafin would take over her position even easier.

No. She wasn't going to think about it. Everything was good now. Better than it had ever been. Better than Vivia could imagine.

Yet something was still missing.

Vivia never truly knew how much she needed Stix until they didn't even see each other anymore. Stix took a few days off, to visit family and other people she cared about. And that didn't include Vivia. Maybe because Stix didn't want it to, or maybe because Vivia didn't let it. 

Noden curse her, she was a bad friend. Just like she was a bad daughter and a bad sister. But this was even worse. Serafin was a bad father, and Merik was a bad brother. But Stix had never done anything wrong to her.

And everything she did do, Vivia took for granted. She needed to know that Stix would be there to comfort her. To hold her and tell her it was okay if she finally cracked. Vivia needed to be sure Stix was there for her, if she ever had to be. 

At one point, she would've taken anyone's attention. But there was something comfortingly familiar about Stix and how she was always ready to help.

Because Stix always was. The problem was in Vivia. She wasn't even in the same country when Stix needed her. 

Vivia knew it was for the best that she let Stix bring it up if she wanted. She knew that, after weeks of silence, it wasn't her decision to make anymore.

But Vivia finally cracked. And even if she wasn't sure of her importance in Stix's life anymore, she had to try. 

Vivia didn't know what pushed her overboard, but soon she was standing in front of the door to Stix's apartment, unsure whether she should knock or not. There were times when she just came in, before someone broke in and Stix finally learned why people keep their doors locked.

But Vivia needed to make this right. She took a deep breath before knocking twice. It was quick and quiet.. She had no idea if Stix even was there. One part of her hoped she wasn't. Because then she could say she at least tried without having to go through the mortifying process.

But Stix was there, and before Vivia even had time to think about what she would say, the doors opened in front of her. "Your majesty?"

Vivia hated everything about the way Stix said it. The words, the reluctancy... Friends didn't act that way. And even if it was partly just Stix guessing who it was at the door, it was still defeating that she didn't say her name. "May I come in?" 

Stix let her in without another word and closed the door behind. The silence wasn't pleasant, and it didn't look like Stix was going to break it. Vivia didn't blame her. 

Stix sat down on one of the worn out armchairs, leaving the other one to Vivia. And then she just looked at her. A question Vivia couldn't deny her the answer to.

"Am I a bad friend?" It was too bold. Too direct. But it was the only way Vivia knew how to say it, and something needed to be said.

"Of course you're not. You've just been busy," Stix said. She looked confident in her words, enough to make Vivia wish she could tell her she was right. 

"For some time, yes, but after that I was just a selfish coward." Vivia didn't like the look on Stix's face. She couldn't tell what it meant, but there were many feelings. None that she could decipher, though. 

"I know you don't need me," Vivia said, "but I should have been there for you either way."

Stix looked at her for one long moment before she said anything. And when she finally did, she didn't look happy about it. "I've been telling myself that you'd come see me as soon as you were no longer occupied."

"I'm sorry." It was not enough to fix whatever caused Stix to look at her like that. It made Vivia want to tell her everything she felt, but she kept it in. 

"Don't," Stix said, "just don't. We can pretend this is it."

"What do you mean?" 

Stix got up and sat on the arm of Vivia's chair. So close, yet so far. 

"There was no selfishness involved. You just finally have time for me. Doesn't that sound better?" It did. But Vivia wasn't sure she deserved it. "I have so much I want to tell you. And I'm sure you have a lot to say to me, too."

"How can you forgive me so easily?" 

"You're here now, aren't you? That makes you a great friend."

Vivia didn't expect it to all be back to normal so quickly. She didn't expect Stix to have been hoping for her time. And most of all, Vivia didn't expect her best friend to try to awkwardly reach for a hug. It was a sweet attempt, even if it didn't work.

They were already so close, closer than Vivia ever let herself get to Stix, but something came over her. The armchair was big enough for both of them, if Vivia sat on the side. So she did. 

Stix sat next to her. She shuffled a bit, trying to get comfortable. And when she did, she looked at Vivia again. They were close enough that Stix didn't need to strain her eyes to look at her. 

"I missed you," she said. And then she pressed a single kiss against her cheek. 

Vivia needed a moment to find her voice. It was just a simple thing. It shouldn't have made her speechless. 

"You missed me that much?" Stix raised her eyebrow. Vivia tried to come up with a way to clarify it that wouldn't make her look like a desperate fool. She failed. "You missed me enough to kiss me?"

Vivia noticed too late that she'd called it a kiss. She had been thinking about what happened in the Undercity as a kiss for so long, even though it wasn't quite that. But Stix didn't seem to mind. Quite the opposite, actually.

Vivia hadn't even registered just how incompetent her word choice was until Stix smiled and responded. "I missed you enough to kiss you a dozen times," she said, "and then again."

Even though Vivia knew what kind of kiss Stix meant, it was still unbelievably hard to speak up. Because Stix was right next to her, barely any space between them, and she was talking about kissing. Vivia thought it was a miracle that she remembered how to talk at all.

"I missed you too," she finally said. 

"Enough to kiss me?" 

And because it was Stix that asked, Vivia nodded. Whatever kind of kiss it ended up being, it couldn't be bad.


End file.
